§4252. Definitions - Article 2

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms
have the following meanings. [2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW).]

1.Approved placement.
"Approved placement" means the receiving state has determined after an assessment
that the placement is both safe and suitable for the child and is in compliance with
the applicable laws of the receiving state governing the placement of children in
the receiving state.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

2.Assessment.
"Assessment" means an evaluation of a prospective placement to determine whether the
placement meets the individualized needs of the child, including but not limited to
the child's safety and stability, health and well-being and mental, emotional and
physical development.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

3.Child.
"Child" means an individual who has not attained 18 years of age.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

4.Default.
"Default" means the failure of a member state to perform the obligations or responsibilities
imposed upon it by this chapter or the bylaws or rules of the interstate commission.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

5.Indian tribe.
"Indian tribe" means any Indian tribe, band, nation or other organized group or community
of Indians recognized as eligible for services provided to Indians by the United States
Secretary of the Interior because of their status as Indians, including any Alaska
native village as defined in Section 3(c) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act,
43 United States Code, Section 1602(c).

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

6.Interstate Commission for the Placement of Children; interstate commission.
"Interstate Commission for the Placement of Children" or "interstate commission" means
the commission that is created under section 4258.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

7.Jurisdiction.
"Jurisdiction" means the power and authority of a court to hear and decide matters.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

8.Member state.
"Member state" means a state that has enacted this compact.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

9.Noncustodial parent.
"Noncustodial parent" means a person who, at the time of the commencement of court
proceedings in the sending state, does not have sole legal custody of the child or
has joint legal custody of the child and who is not the subject of allegations or
findings of child abuse or neglect.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

10.Nonmember state.
"Nonmember state" means a state that has not enacted this compact.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

11.Notice of residential placement.
"Notice of residential placement" means information regarding a placement into a residential
facility provided to the receiving state, including, but not limited to, the name,
date and place of birth of the child, the identity and address of the parent or legal
guardian, evidence of authority to make the placement and the name and address of
the facility in which the child will be placed. "Notice of residential placement"
includes information regarding a discharge and any unauthorized absence from the facility.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

12.Placement.
"Placement" means the act by a public or private child placing agency intended to
arrange for the care or custody of a child in another state.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

13.Private child placing agency.
"Private child placing agency" means any private corporation, agency, foundation,
institution or charitable organization or any private person or attorney that facilitates,
causes or is involved in the placement of a child from one state to another and that
is not an instrumentality of the state or acting under color of state law.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

14.Provisional placement.
"Provisional placement" means that the receiving state has determined that the proposed
placement is safe and suitable and, to the extent allowable, the receiving state has
temporarily waived its standards or requirements otherwise applicable to prospective
foster or adoptive parents so as to not delay the placement. Completion of the receiving
state requirements regarding training for prospective foster or adoptive parents may
not delay an otherwise safe and suitable placement.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

15.Public child placing agency.
"Public child placing agency" means any government child welfare agency or child protection
agency or a private entity under contract with such an agency, regardless of whether
it acts on behalf of a state, county, municipality or other governmental unit and
that facilitates, causes or is involved in the placement of a child from one state
to another.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

16.Receiving state.
"Receiving state" means the state to which a child is sent, brought or caused to be
sent or brought.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

17.Relative.
"Relative" means someone who is related to the child as a parent, stepparent, sibling
by half or whole blood or by adoption, grandparent, aunt, uncle or first cousin or
a nonrelative with such significant ties to the child that the nonrelative may be
regarded as a relative as determined by the court in the sending state.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

18.Residential facility.
"Residential facility" means a facility providing a level of care that is sufficient
to substitute for parental responsibility or foster care and is beyond what is needed
for assessment or treatment of an acute condition. "Residential facilities" does
not include institutions primarily educational in character, hospitals or other medical
facilities.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

19.Rule.
"Rule" means a written directive, mandate, standard or principle issued by the interstate
commission adopted pursuant to section 4261 that is of general applicability and that
implements, interprets or prescribes a policy or provision of this chapter. "Rule"
has the force and effect of statutory law in a member state and includes the amendment,
repeal or suspension of an existing rule.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

20.Sending state.
"Sending state" means the state from which the placement of a child is initiated.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

21.Service member's permanent duty station.
"Service member's permanent duty station" means the military installation where an
active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United States is currently assigned
and is physically located under competent orders that do not specify the duty as temporary.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

22.Service member's state of legal residence.
"Service member's state of legal residence" means the state in which the active duty
member of the Armed Forces of the United States is considered a resident for tax and
voting purposes.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

23.State.
"State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth
of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern
Mariana Islands and any other territory of the United States.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

24.State court.
"State court" means a judicial body of a state that is vested by law with responsibility
for adjudicating cases involving abuse, neglect, deprivation, delinquency or status
offenses of individuals who have not attained 18 years of age.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

25.Supervision.
"Supervision" means monitoring provided by the receiving state once a child has been
placed in a receiving state pursuant to this chapter.

[
2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW)
.]

SECTION HISTORY

2007, c. 255, §6 (NEW).

The Revisor's Office cannot provide legal advice or
interpretation of Maine law to the public. If you need legal
advice, please consult
a qualified attorney.